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A Decade of Decentralisation? Assessing the Role of the Government Offices for the English Regions

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  • Steven Musson
  • Adam Tickell
  • Peter John

    (Department of Government, International Politics and Philosophy, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL, England)

Abstract

The Government Offices for the English regions were established in 1994 to coordinate the regional activities of three central government departments. A decade on, regional government in England is greatly expanded, and two other institutions of regional governance, the Regional Development Agencies and the Regional Assemblies, have also been created. In 2002 the Labour government proposed that this ‘triad’ of regional governance should be further reformed and strengthened, in some places being brought to democratic account. In this paper, we argue that academic research on the English regions has generally focused on the Regional Development Agencies and to a lesser extent the Regional Assemblies, to the exclusion of the Government Offices. This focus has led some to overstate the extent to which regional government represents the real decentralisation of power. Focusing on the role of the Government Offices, we argue that central government retains a great deal of power over the ‘triad’ institutions, which in their current form may be unable to challenge the structure of power in the English state.

Suggested Citation

  • Steven Musson & Adam Tickell & Peter John, 2005. "A Decade of Decentralisation? Assessing the Role of the Government Offices for the English Regions," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 37(8), pages 1395-1412, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:envira:v:37:y:2005:i:8:p:1395-1412
    DOI: 10.1068/a36253
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    References listed on IDEAS

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